Conservative Party of Canada

Andrew Scheer

Laval, Québec – Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced a plan to expand and extend its support for apprentices, their families and the businesses that hire aspiring tradespeople.

“Apprenticeships play a vital role in our post-secondary education system and help provide skills and knowledge to grow our economy,” said Prime Minister Harper. “That’s why our government has provided incentives for people to enter trades and tax credits for businesses to hire aspiring tradespeople.”

The Apprenticeship Job Creation Tax Credit was introduced by the Harper Government in 2006 and provides a 10 percent, non-refundable tax credit to businesses on wages paid to qualifying apprentices in the first two years of their contract. As a result of today’s announcement, the maximum credit will increase from $2,000 to $2,500 and will be extended to the third and fourth years of apprenticeship training.

The Prime Minister noted that over 11,700 businesses and 67,900 apprentices benefited from tax credit in 2013 – five times as many as in 2006. The extension of the tax credit will help encourage more apprentices to successfully complete their training, and will ensure they find well paid jobs.

“While registration for apprenticeship programs is growing, our plan to expand and extend this tax credit will help even more apprentices acquire the skills to find well-paying jobs,” Prime Minister Harper said, noting that Canada needs more skilled tradespeople to fill available positions.

“Justin Trudeau opposed every single tax cut we introduced,” said Mr. Harper. “He said that he will cancel the Apprenticeship Job Creation Tax credit, and he wants to take money out of the pockets of Canadians to create big and poorly-conceived government programs, inspired by the elite, that will ultimately do nothing to help Canadian families. That is the price of inexperience and bad fiscal management. He’s just not ready.”

“Thomas Mulcair has never seen a tax cut he liked. He wants to raise taxes for all Canadians. He plans his big programs with union bosses in order to increase the size of government. We can’t trust him,”

said Mr. Harper. “Mulcair and his NDP propose reckless plans that will set Quebec, and all of Canada, back. He will be a real economic disaster.”
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